


Lily Evans, Death Eater

by Chelonie



Series: Peace for Wix Britain [1]
Category: Harry Potter - J. K. Rowling
Genre: Albus Dumbledore Bashing, Armistice Agreement, BAMF Lily Evans Potter, BAMF Narcissa Black Malfoy, Black Family (Harry Potter) - Freeform, Complete, Crack and Angst, Dark Lily Evans, Dark Lily Evans Potter, Dark Mark (Harry Potter), Death Eater Lily Evans Potter, F/F, F/M, Gen, Harry Potter is renamed Aries Black, Implied/Referenced Rape/Non-con, James Potter Bashing, Lily Evans Potter Lives, Love Potion/Spell, M/M, Manipulative Albus Dumbledore, Minister for Magic - Freeform, Regulus Black Lives, Regulus adopts Harry Potter, Sane Voldemort (Harry Potter), Sirius Black Bashing, Sympathetic Peter Pettigrew, Unspeakable Lily Evans Potter, Unspeakable Severus Snape, Unspeakables (Harry Potter), Wizarding War ends with a Peace Agreement
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-02-19
Updated: 2019-04-28
Packaged: 2019-10-31 13:49:19
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Major Character Death, Rape/Non-Con
Chapters: 14
Words: 14,700
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/17850668
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Chelonie/pseuds/Chelonie
Summary: Lily hated that toerag James Potter until suddenly she didn't and they were madly in love.What if it was a love potion?What if she was set free the moment James died?What if that was enough to make her switch sides?(Starts angsty, then gets a bit cracky)





	1. Chapter 1: Life-debt

**Author's Note:**

  * Inspired by [free, however briefly](https://archiveofourown.org/works/15799407) by [Newydd](https://archiveofourown.org/users/Newydd/pseuds/Newydd). 
  * Inspired by [Her Beauty and the Moonlight](https://archiveofourown.org/works/8981179) by [BrilliantLady](https://archiveofourown.org/users/BrilliantLady/pseuds/BrilliantLady). 
  * Inspired by [Time For a Change](https://archiveofourown.org/works/14632731) by [corvusdraconis](https://archiveofourown.org/users/corvusdraconis/pseuds/corvusdraconis), [Dragon_and_the_Rose](https://archiveofourown.org/users/Dragon_and_the_Rose/pseuds/Dragon_and_the_Rose). 



"Lily, take Harry and run! I'll hold him off!"

 

Part of her is thinking, "How?" but the rest of her, cool under pressure, knows it's already too late to run. She can feel the anti-apparition jinx like a jolt of ice against a toothache, and her only hope _(barely a hope)_ is the game she's played with Harry so many times that he knows it by heart. She puts him in the wardrobe, tosses the Invisibility Cloak over him and casts  _Silencio_. _(If I can kill Voldemort before he kills me. If I can kill him before Harry gets bored enough to come out of the wardrobe. If I can kill him before...)_

Then she hears two Unforgivable words.

And instead of grief, she feels rage, _rage_ , **_rage_** , because she suddenly understands so much. Suddenly everything is so clear. 

 

"Stand aside, you silly girl... stand aside now..."

"No," Lily says. She is standing in the doorway of the nursery, her wand held loosely in her hand. "Take me instead." She looks up into his red eyes. "Let me join you. You know what I am." She can feel the pull of the life-debt, and it reminds her of the first moment she held Harry, when she felt a desire to protect him with all that she was. Oxytocin, she read from a muggle science book. This is magical, not hormonal, but the pull is similar. She  _has_ to protect Lord Voldemort. 

"A mudblood," he scoffs.

"An Unspeakable," she retorts. "A member of the Order. An Occlumens. And yes, a mudblood. Who would ever suspect me?"

"I just killed your husband? Why would you serve me?"

"That _rapist_ was dosing me with potions," she spits, then kneels before him. "His death set me free. I owe you a life debt, my Lord." 

_(She doesn't understand until much later why Voldemort swears and turns away from her, and begins destroying things. She remains on her knees, her wand held loosely, waiting to see if he will accept her service.)_

"Your child?" he finally says.

"Please... don't hurt him. Give him to someone who will love him, care for him. Send him to school when it's time."

"And what will you give me for his life?" Voldemort sneers.

"My life and my death are yours, my Lord. I will swear any oath you require."

Voldemort lifts her chin and stares into her eyes. "Would you kill for me, mudblood? Would you betray your friends?"

"The ones who thought it was so  _sweet_ that I had finally fallen for a man I'd hated for years? The ones who were probably in on it with him?" Lily says bitterly. 

She can feel him in her mind, and so she lets him through her shields. She has never been more sincere. Her magic _burns_ , dark as sin, bitter and wanting vengeance. Voldemort - Tom Riddle - understands rage. He understands _hate_. This woman has enough hate to rival his own. She could burn Wix Britain to the sea with it.

"Give me your arm," he says. He presses his wand to her left arm and hisses at it and she feels pain, burning pain, almost beyond the _Cruciatus,_ but it somehow feels _right_. Her magic recognises this as a suitable recompense to the life-debt, and his does as well, and that adds to the bond and gives it a power that most Dark Marks don't have.

"There's no skull," she remarks as she admires the snake.

"You get that when you make your first kill," he says.

She looks up at him with blazing green eyes. _Avada_ green. "Let me have Sirius Black, my Lord."

He chuckles. " _He_ wasn't the one who betrayed you."

She scoffs. "I cast the  _Fidelius._ Of course I know it was Peter. But  _Black_ knew about the potions. Potter never did anything without him. I can play grieving widow and kill him in revenge for my husband and child. No one would convict me. It will have been a crime of passion. I won't hurt Peter. We can grieve publicly together in Order meetings. We'll be good spies for you, my Lord."

 

He hisses the command for the Dark Mark to hide, and her arm is smooth and unmarked. "The boy," he says. 

She takes him from the wardrobe, and he's asleep, as she'd hoped. She takes his favourite plushie Niffler from the bed and puts it in Harry's arms. "You won't let him be hurt?"

The Dark Lord touches the nape of Harry's neck and hisses softly, and a small snake mark appears on his skin. Lily looks at Voldemort sharply. "Not a Dark Mark. A sign of my protection." The little snake tattoo slithers down Harry's neck and along his shoulder. "I will know if any harm comes to him."

"Thank you, my Lord," Lily says. She wraps the child in the Cloak and puts him in Voldemort's arms. "You'd better hurt me."

He blasts her through the wall of the nursery, and her world goes black.

 

Her next sight is the face of Hagrid weeping and trying to revive her. Hagrid, who she probably _couldn't_ kill, even on her Lord's orders. She can't imagine Hagrid being in on the potioning.

She hopes he wasn't in on it.

"Oh Lily, oh it's awful, I saw James, and poor Harry," and he bursts into sobs. He helps Lily to her feet, and Lily clings to him, ready to react appropriately, and there's a body in Harry's bed.

It's got to be a homonculus. She _thinks_ it's a homonculus. They'd exchanged oaths. But it still hurts, and it doesn't take much acting to cry, and hold the body that might be her baby...

 

And then Sirius Black arrives, and she roars, **_"HOW COULD YOU?"_** and she attacks him with a fury that even a trained Auror can't withstand, her magic wild and powerful, and the darkness of her new bond with Voldemort giving every curse more power, until her last  _Diffindo_ slices deep into his leg, and he collapses in the street, and bleeds out before he can cast any healing spell. 

It's the first time she's ever killed someone, and she's _glad_ , glad he's dead, and only wishes it had been Potter, wishes she had done it to both of them years ago.

 

And just as she remembers that she's supposed to be a grief-maddened widow, and so collapses in tears for  _(ugh)_ Dumbledore to find and give her meaningless words of  _(pah!)_ wisdom, she thinks that she'd quite like to be friends with Severus again.

 

Now that they are both on the same side.

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Voldie: I wanna murder a baby.  
> Lily: How about you _not_ murder the baby, and make me a Death Eater instead.  
> Voldie: Mudblood, you're my kind of crazy!


	2. Chapter 2: Peter

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> "No," Lily says. "I want to know what you knew."
> 
> Peter swallows hard, stares at his bangers and mash. "Can I tell you everything before you decide whether you're going to kill me?"
> 
> (TW: references to love potion induced rape, non-explicit)

She waits in a pub in Muggle London, and Peter approaches, sits down in her booth. Good, kind, gentle Peter, whom no one suspects is secretly a Death Eater. 

"Is he safe?" she asks.

"Yes. Yes. That wasn't Harry," he tells her. 

"Do you want to know where-?"

"No," she says. "I want to know what you knew."

Peter swallows hard, stares at his bangers and mash. "Can I tell you everything before you decide whether you're going to kill me?"

Lily feels the fire inside her flaring up. "That bad?"

"My mother." Peter says. "She has Hargan's Syndrome. There's no cure, but there are potions that give her relief. I learned to make all of them - you know I've always been a good potioneer - but the ingredients are expensive. And she did without to send me to Hogwarts. So as soon as I got there, I started doing anything I could for money - running errands for other students, writing essays, tutoring once I got far enough ahead. Brewing potions. And that's how I ended up as one of the Marauders. Black and Potter loved having me as a general dogsbody, along with Remus. They had money, we didn't. So they paid us to be their house elves, while pretending we were equal to them. 

"And love potions?" Lily asks.

"I wouldn't make James a love potion, and Remus couldn't. And I thought they'd leave it at that. He'd keep trying to get your attention, every pure-blood girl in the school would keep trying to get his, and eventually his parents would make him choose one of them. But Slughorn made a sample of _Amortentia_ for class one day, so Potter made a bunch of cauldrons explode and Black knicked the sample. Only instead of using it on you... he used it on me."

"Oh no!" Lily reaches out and takes his hand, which is shaking.

"Potter made me... orally... Then he told me that if I loved him, I'd do it for Black too, even though all I could think of was Potter. So I did, because that potion is evil. It's like liquid Imperius. I was so sure I wanted to. Then, he... convinced me that he needed me and trusted me more than anyone, and he knew that I could make the potion for him. I couldn't think of doing otherwise. I made  _Amortentia_ for him, because the  _Amortentia_ told me to. He was only using a low dose on me. He had to make that sample bottle last until the first cauldron was ready, so he knew he only needed about three drops a day for me. But when he had that cauldron? You got a full vial the first day, then a tablespoon a day after that." Peter said. "And... I hated you then, because he stopped using me. He didn't need me, because he had you. He would just send me to Black."

Lily thinks she knows the exact moment it happened. She had been sitting at breakfast, reading at the table, and picked up her coffee. After gulping half the cup, she had suddenly looked at James Potter, toerag supreme, and said, "Wanna skip class together?" And an hour later, she and James Potter were fucking under the seating by the Quidditch Pitch. 

She shudders in memory. It had always been one of their favourite romantic stories. Now it's a rape tale - a double rape tale, because it had happened to Peter first.

"What made you turn to the Dark Lord?" she finally asks.

"James Potter," he says. "He decided that since I was being dosed, he didn't need to pay me anymore. But of course, my mother still needed her potions. I had to get work elsewhere, and eventually, I was away from him long enough that it wore off. So I decided I wanted him dead. I sold my services to the Dark Lord."

"And me? Harry?"

"Honestly? I was too angry to care, until later. When I realised that by going under the  _Fidelius,_ you would all three be together, in hiding. But still... once you chose me as Secret Keeper, I made my peace with it. I decided it was the lesser betrayal than making the potions for Potter all those years. So I sold you. The bounty has gone into mother's vaults. She's never been in better health. The Dark Lord has  _Severus_ making her potions, so they are of the highest quality," Peter says. His voice shakes as he adds. "I think that's all." He expects a killing curse under the table, that the muggles can write off as a stroke.

"Who else knew I was being drugged?" Lily asks.

"Other than Black?" Peter says. "I don't think Remus knew."

"Not even with his nose?" Lily asks.

"He can smell things are different when someone takes a potion, but it doesn't tell him why or which potion. Potter and Black were always thinking they could get him to identify everything with his magic nose, but it isn't like that. He can tell that someone smells a bit different, but he wouldn't know which potion they took unless they spilled it on themselves, and even then, he wasn't great shakes in Potions, so he usually couldn't identify it then either. Girls - women - in particular always smell strange to him because your monthly cycles and his monthly cycles rarely line up. His nose is strongest during the full moon, and barely stronger than human at the new moon. I'm sure he would have put a stop to either of us being dosed, if he'd known. I hope he would have," Peter says.

 

Peter stirs circles in his mash. He hasn't eaten a single bite. "Are you going to kill me?"

Lily shakes her head. "No. Potter and Black raped us both. I still want the world to burn. Do you?"

Peter hesitates. "Y-yes?"

 

Lily laughs. It's a dark laugh, and Peter wonders if the Dark Lord is going to have competition one day.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> First draft: Potter does nothing physical to Peter.  
> Peter: "Sorry, I wish that was true, but ..." *whispers*  
> Author: "Wait, what?"  
> Peter: *looks around nervously* "Yeah, then Black..."  
> Author: "But... that's not how I imagined this at all!"  
> Peter: "Shut up! I was _there_ , okay?"  
> Author: "I'm sorry. You're right. I'll just... let you and Lily get on with it. Try not to break the Statute of Secrecy.


	3. Chapter 3: Baby baby who has the baby

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> "Rise," the Dark Lord says with a lazy wave. "Be seated. Call your wife. I have a task for both of you."
> 
> Lucius sends a house elf for Narcissa, and begins the first internal stages of panic, because if the Dark Lord is going to ask him to murder a baby, then he'll probably have to murder a baby, or his own son will be killed, but fuck, he does not want to do this. He does not want this to be his life.

Lucius Malfoy hates when his Lord and Master comes bursting through his wards as if they didn't exist. He especially hates that he has to pretend to be overjoyed to see the Dark Lord. He suspects that the Dark Lord knows he is pretending and is secretly delighted in the misery he is causing.

There are so many layers of hate and deception. Only a pair of Slytherins could manage it.

 

What he doesn't expect when he arrives in his formal sitting room is to find the Dark Lord cradling a sleeping child in his arms, about the age of his own son. Thankfully with dark hair instead of blonde, or he would have probably had a heart attack on the spot.

 

"My Lord," Lucius said, kneeling before him.

"Rise," the Dark Lord says with a lazy wave. "Be seated. Call your wife. I have a task for both of you."

He sends a house elf for Narcissa, and begins the first internal stages of panic, because if the Dark Lord is going to ask him to murder a baby, then he'll probably have to murder a baby, or his own son will be killed, but fuck, he does not want to do this. He does not want this to be his life. 

Narcissa kneels as she enters, far more graciously than he ever could, and is also told to rise and be seated. 

"Do you know who this is?" he asks.

Lucius does not have a clue, but Narcissa, who is far more aware of the lives of children says, "Harry Potter, my Lord."

"He is. Right now, Dumbledore is discovering a perfect homonculus of him back in Godric's Hollow. I need this child to disappear," the Dark Lord says.

And Lucius's eyes grow wide.

 

_He has. To kill. A baby._

 

The Dark Lord laughs, so hard that the child in his arms wakes up and begins to cry. Narcissa, after waiting a polite moment to see if the Dark Lord has any idea how to soothe a crying baby (he does not) scoops the baby up and rocks him, talking to him softly. Harry settles. It isn't  _his_ mama, but it is  _someone's_ mama.

"I don't mean for you to kill him, Lucius. I want no harm to come to this child. But I want the identity of Harry Potter to disappear. This child will need to be raised, with care and kindness, by someone in a Dark family, under another name, and eventually go to Hogwarts, all without Dumbledore ever learning the truth. I don't need the details. Just make it happen," the Dark Lord says.

"Yes, my Lord," Lucius says faintly. 

"Yes, my Lord," says Narcissa, with more authority. "We won't fail you."

The Dark Lord hands Lucius a plushie Niffler and an Invisiblity Cloak. "For the boy." He runs a finger along the boy's cheek, almost fondly, then Disapparates through the wards.

 

Lucius snaps his fingers. "Dobby, brandy for two." After he's fortified himself with a sip, he says, "Cissy, how are we...?"

"He's a Black," Narcissa says, kissing the boy's forehead. "Can't you see the likeness?"

"No. No. We can't pass him off as ours. Even if we wanted, he's the wrong age. He's the same age as Draco!" Lucius babbles.

"It's a shame Bella is mad. She'd love him," Cissy says. 

"Care and kindness!" Lucius says. "There's a reason I don't send her owls."

"Regulus," Cissy says. "If he agrees, then he can claim the child as a bastard and raise him."

"At Grimmauld Place, with Walpurga?"

"All we can do is ask him," Cissy says, and snaps her fingers. "Dobby! Go to Grimmauld Place and ask Regulus if he will come back with you. Tell him it's urgent on our Lord's business."

Dobby pops away. Then a moment later returns with Regulus's house-elf, Kreacher, who is crying so hard he can barely be understood. "Master Regulus is gone! Master Regulus ordered Kreacher to leave Master Regulus! Kreacher did not want to leave Master Regulus! Master Regulus is all alone! Master Regulus is going to die!"

Lucius is still opening and closing his mouth in shock, while Narcissa hands the baby to Dobby. "Dobby, put the baby in the crib next to little Master Draco, then return and put both me and Master Lucius in duelling robes."

Two pops later, and this is done. "Dobby, Lucius, grab hold. Kreacher, take us to where you left Master Regulus."

 

 

 _"INFERI, Regulus? You were fighting Inferi?!"_ Narcissa bellows later, as she bandages her heavily wounded cousin. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Regulus: *drinking nightmare potion* "Oh, it's that nightmare I always have about cousin Narcissa kicking my ass..."


	4. Chapter 4: Crow

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> "We'll never know," Lily said. "But my life starts over now. New Patronus. New name - I never meant to change from my maiden name. I have a bloody great fortune at Gringotts that I don't want. Do you still want that shop on Diagon you used to talk about? I can back you."
> 
> "I would love to spend Potter's money that way, but Dumbledore," he spat out the name. "Is insisting that I teach at Hogwarts. With the threat of Azkaban if I don't."
> 
> Lily sat up and grabbed Severus by the arm. "Oh hell no. What does he have on you? Because I'll swear under oath to anything you want."

_"Expecto Patronum!"_ Lily shouted. She was thinking of the moment she received her Dark Mark. According to Dumbledore, and thus was received wisdom among the Order, no Death Eater could make a Patronus. But Lily, unlike Dumbledore, had a Mastery in Charms, and she knew there was no reason a Dark Wix couldn't have a joyful memory. 

The silver-blue mist shot out of her wand, but the shape was different. Her Patronus had changed from a squirrel to a doe after she had become obsessed with Potter. But this was neither. It flew around her head, then landed on her outstretched arm.

A crow. A trickster god. An omen of death. A gatherer of information. A symbol of the goddess of war and rage.

"You're gorgeous," she crooned to her new Patronus, perfect in every way. "I'll call you Badb."

* * *

 

Severus was brewing at Spinner's End when the crow flew in and landed politely on a shelf, waiting for him to reach a safe stopping point. When he had, and shielded the cauldron, he looked up at the crow. "Well?"

"Severus, it's Lily." And the sound of her voice nearly broke him. It had been years since he'd lost her friendship. "I'm sure you've heard about James and... Harry." He had. The Dark Lord had protected Lily, like he'd asked. "Can we talk? Please?"

The crow disappeared.

Severus cast his own Patronus, and he was unsurprised that his was no longer a doe. Another crow burst from his wand, and he said, "Always. I'm at home."

 

* * *

 

A few minutes later, she was at his door, and she was more beautiful than ever. They stared at each other for a long moment, until she grabbed and hugged him tightly. "Sev. Oh god Sev, I'm so sorry."

He didn't understand. What did she have to apologise for? But they went around the house to the garden, even though in Severus's opinion, it was far too cold to be outdoors, and they sat on the ground, and she said, "You tried to tell me that he was dosing me. And I wouldn't listen."

Severus understood then, and hung his head. "Yes. I recognised all the signs."

"You tried to tell me. You even tried to give me the antidote. And I wouldn't hear you," Lily said.

"You  _couldn't_ hear me," Severus said. "I didn't blame you. But the Gryffindors closed ranks around you, made sure I couldn't get close again. I tried, but... I ended up in the hospital wing. Dumbledore wouldn't hear me. He said some bullshit about the power of love and that even if Potter had used a potion to get your attention, he clearly wasn't using one to keep it. I finally got Poppy Pomphrey to listen, and she  _did_ give you an antidote, but I think Potter was dosing you too strongly for it to have an effect. All it did was make you have a fight, which you quickly made up from."

"I'm glad he's dead. I'm glad I killed Black," Lily said.

"I'm sorry about your son," Severus offered.

Lily flopped back, and looked into the overcast sky. Severus cast a warming charm on himself, but he knew Lily wouldn't want one. "Did you know children conceived under the influence of a love potion are unable to love?"

Severus gave her a  _look._ The one that said,  _Hello, Potions Master here._ "There's some controversy over whether it's unable to love, or unable to feel love naturally."

"What's the difference?" Lily said. 

"If it's the second, then they can be taught to love," Severus said. "But you're saying he's better off dead?"

"We'll never know," Lily said. "But my life starts over now. New Patronus. New name - back to Lily Evans. I have a bloody great fortune at Gringotts that I don't want. Do you still want that shop on Diagon you used to talk about? I can back you."

"I would love to spend Potter's money that way, but _Dumbledore_ ," he spat out the name. "Is insisting that I teach at Hogwarts. With the threat of Azkaban if I don't."

Lily sat up and grabbed Severus by the arm. "Oh hell no. What does he have on you? Because I'll swear under oath to anything you want."

Severus looked away. "Lily, I just got you back. I don't want to tell you something that's going to drive you away again. I'll teach the idiot children. How bad can it be?"

"Sev..."

"I'm a Death Eater. Just like the Gryffindors always accused me of being," Severus muttered.

"I knew that," Lily said.

"It gets worse," Severus said. "I told the Dark Lord about a prophecy I overheard. _'The one with the power to vanquish the Dark Lord approaches... born to those who have thrice defied him, born as the seventh month dies...'_ I didn't know it meant your son. I didn't know he'd go after you. I begged the Dark Lord to spare you. Then I begged Dumbledore to protect you."

"So Dumbledore's price was to work at Hogwarts... oh, to spy for him on the Dark Lord. With Azkaban as his stick if you step out of line," Lily said. "What was the Dark Lord's price?"

"He said he would try to spare you, but could make no promises, given how fierce an opponent you had always been," Severus said. "There was no price."

 

"Dumbledore's a twatwaffle," Lily said. "I'm starting back at work next week. How would you like to be Unspeakable Snape?"

 

 

* * *

 

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> More about Badb: https://earthandstarryheaven.com/2017/11/15/crow-goddesses/
> 
> I found this link for pronunciation of Badh: https://forvo.com/word/badb/
> 
> (Native speakers, please feel free to correct me!)
> 
> Lily: "A squirrel Patronus? Really, author?"  
> Author: "That's kind of how I see your younger self..."  
> Lily: "I hate you. I am setting you on fire through the computer screen."  
> Author: "Duly noted."


	5. Chapter 5: The First Rule of War

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> This was bad. Very very bad. As in, the Dark Lord would burn the Black Family tree to the ground bad.
> 
> She was going to kill Regulus. No, she was going to use every single dark curse she knew that would keep him alive and suffering. Malfoy Manor had a dungeon, after all. She could keep him alive a very very long time.

Once Regulus was no longer in immediate danger of death, Narcissa  _Obliviated_ Lucius and sent him to bed. She didn't know what the Dark Lord had in the middle of a cave of Inferi, but it wasn't something he wanted everyone to know about. And Lucius was  _terrible_ with important secrets. He  _loved_ secrets, so she made sure to keep him informed of a good amount of them - who was having affairs, who had an addiction to Forgetfulness Potion, who had a squib in the family - and he used them as blackmail material, or to drop vague references to them at dinner parties and make the victims sweat.

Narcissa didn't consider those  _real_ secrets. If the secret wouldn't get you killed or sent to Azkaban, then _It. Didn't. Matter._ And whatever Regulus was doing with Inferi and his favourite house elf that had nearly gotten him killed, was the real kind of secret. 

She questioned Regulus (For values of 'questioning' that included 'Legilimency' since Regulus wasn't fit to answer questions and she didn't have Veritaserum on hand.) and when she learned what he'd done, she almost threw him back to the Inferi.

 

This was bad. Very very bad. As in, the Dark Lord would burn the Black Family tree to the ground bad.

She was going to kill Regulus. No, she was going to use every single dark curse she knew that would keep him alive and suffering. Malfoy Manor had a dungeon, after all. She could keep him alive a very very long time. 

"Kreacher, where is the locket?"

Kreacher refused to tell. She wasn't a direct member of  _his_ family, after all, even if she was a Black, and apparently Regulus had ordered him to stay silent about it. So Narcissa played dirty. 

"I am going to curse Regulus if you do not return here with the Dark Lord's locket," Narcissa said.

"Mistress won't."

Narcissa aimed her wand at Regulus and flayed the skin off of his forearm. "Mistress will," she said, as Regulus screamed.

Kreacher wailed and started banging his head into the wall. 

"The locket, Kreacher." She aimed the wand at Regulus again. "Do you know how much skin he can lose before he dies?"

"No Mistress no!" 

Narcissa took off the skin of his upper arm. Kreacher popped away, then returned with the locket.

She reversed the Flaying Hex and examined the locket closely, but without touching it. Yup. The Darkest of Dark magic. Definitely a Horcrux.

* * *

 

"Issy, put Regulus in the Blue Suite, seal the room against everyone, including Master Lucius and the Dark Lord, and put a barrier of silence around it," she said. "Dobby, mind the children. Kreacher, pick up that locket and take me back to the cave. We're putting it back where we found it," Narcissa said. 

"No, Mistress!" Kreacher wailed. 

Narcissa just  _looked_ at him, and he gave in. 

"Yes, Mistress."

 

Narcissa made Kreacher drink the potion in the basin so they could swap the lockets again. It was touching how his nightmares were all of Regulus dying. They were awfully close, those two. Then he returned them both to Malfoy Manor, even though he was feverishly sick from the potion.

Narcissa only knew one thing about healing house-elves, but it was a thing that always  _always_ worked. 

"Master Regulus orders you to live, Kreacher. He orders you to get well and stop having nightmares," Narcissa said. "He orders you to have a good night's sleep."

She had his sleeping form taken to the house-elf quarters, and went to wait for Regulus to recover.

* * *

Four days later, Regulus finally came to his senses, to find Narcissa watching him from across the room. The look on her face had his 'Oh shit!' senses on high alert.

"Regulus, what is the first rule of war?"

"Don't start a war that you aren't in position to win," he recited. This wasn't something they'd learned in school. It was all learned at the feet of Arcturus and Pollux Black.

She flung his decoy locket at him, and he flinched. 

"A  _note,_ Regulus? _A note?_ To tell the Dark Lord 'Please go kill every member of my family, including my infant nephew'? What the  _fuck_ were you thinking?!" Narcissa roared.

Regulus opened his mouth, realised what he was going to say was about to make things worse, and closed it again.

"I fucked up?" he said.

"I _fixed_ your fuck-up," Narcissa said. "Hopefully." She waved her hand, burning the note and melting the fake locket to a puddle of gold (and catching Regulus's sheets on fire until he could grab his wand and cast  _Aguamenti_ on them). 

"If you ever again decide to go to war on the Dark Lord, you will figure out how to do it _successfully_ , and you will come to me first and not do it alone. You're a Black, not a bloody _Gryffindor._ But until that day, you will not even think of putting a toenail out of line. You are a servant of the Dark Lord, just as we all are. _Do you understand me?_ "

Regulus hung his head. "Yes, Narcissa."

"Dobby, fetch the new little one," she said. 

The house-elf appeared, carrying a child.

"Regulus, this is your son."

Regulus stared blankly at the child. "What? Wait, _what_?"

"We haven't worked out yet whether he's a bastard, or a product of a secret marriage. I'm hoping you can..."

"Narcissa, I'm a virgin!" Regulus blurted out. He was pretty sure frotting with Barty Crouch didn't count...

"Regulus, I do not give a house-elf's bogey for the state of your genitals. This child needs a parent, and you are a shit Death Eater, so you're getting a change of careers."

"Pa'foot!" the baby said. "Pa'foot, up!" 

Regulus bemusedly reached down and lifted the boy up onto the bed. "Why this child? Of all the war orphans..."

"He's a Black."

"Oh." That was answer enough. The Blacks always took care of their own. "What's his name?"

"He needs a new one. What about Corvus?" Narcissa suggested.

"Why Corvus? It's a southern constellation."

"His black hair suggested it. There are plenty of others to go with." Narcissa said.

"Crows are bad omens. How about Aquila? Scorpius? Aries? What's your name?" He said to the boy.

"Arry!" the boy said.

"Okay, Aries Black. That's nice and traditional. Shall we give him a nontraditional middle name, perhaps to pay tribute to his 'mother's' family?"

"Instead of Aries Orion?"

"I'm  _not_ naming him after  _father,"_ Regulus spat. 

"Lycoris? Uncle Lycoris wasn't so bad," Narcissa said.

"I guess. I was 4 when he died," Regulus said. 

"Aries Lycoris Black. Your... paramour?.... didn't tell you she was pregnant, and you only found out after she died," Narcissa said.

"Tragic," Regulus said. "Why didn't I court her properly?"

"She was muggleborn of course. Your mother never would have approved. And since... Isla, a Scandinavian witch... knew that they wouldn't, she broke up with you. You didn't find out about your son Aries until she died. She named him according to your family's traditions, but hadn't gotten up the courage to tell you."

"How did she die?" Regulus said.

"By her own wand?" Narcissa said.

"No! I'm going to have to tell the boy this story one day!" Regulus said.

"Very well... broomstick accident?"

"That could work... she was an excellent flyer, but there was a bad storm, she got blown up into the clouds and couldn't land, ice formations in the twigs until the broom lost integrity... this is why you can't have a broomstick until you're 30 young man."

"See? You've got the hang of parenting already," Narcissa said proudly. "One more thing. You've never heard of horcruxes.  _Obliviate."_

* * *

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Narcissa: "Am I the only person in this family who has two braincells to rub together?"  
> Lucius: "I get in a fist fight in the streets to dispose of the Dark Lord's horcrux!"  
> Draco: "I insult a hippogriff right after being told not to!"  
> Dobby: "I fling bludgers at someone to save his life!"  
> Bellatrix: "I'm in love with Snake-face!"  
> Sirius: "I have fleas!"  
> Walpurga: "FILTH! MUDBLOOD! TRAITORS!"
> 
> Narcissa: "...."


	6. Chapter 6: Dark Mark

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> He knew she was in pain. Most Death Eaters screamed through this part, but she merely breathed slowly and heavily.
> 
> "And how did it feel, committing murder for me?"
> 
> She looked up at him, her green eyes blazing. "Insufficient."
> 
> He smiled, and ran his fingers along her cheek, leaving bloody fingerprints behind. "Good answer."

One did not just  _demand_ an audience with the Dark Lord. Unless one was Lily Evans, who seriously did not give a shit anymore. She simply sent Badb, her crow patronus, told her to find the Dark Lord alone, and said, "Need to see you. Got a couple of requests, as well as a gift. Let me know when and where." 

The Dark Lord was in the bath (cleansing spells were all well and good, but they left a magic residue on the skin that built up) washing between his toes, when the crow flew in, as if his bathroom wasn't warded all to hell and back. He'd grabbed his wand and put up a  _Protego_ just as the crow started talking, and then he laughed at the cheek of his Mudblood Death Eater, as well as her skill at getting her charm past his wards. "Little Hangleton graveyard. 10 pm tonight," he replied.

* * *

He got there at 8, and he started setting up the strongest and most complex wards he could come up with that could be done in the time allotted. It was going to be a test of her abilities. When he finished, about ten minutes before she was due, he transfigured a gravestone into a throne and waited.

At 10pm exactly, she appeared before him, kneeling, in full Death Eater regalia. "My Lord."

"How..."

She looked up at him, and he could have sworn she was smirking at him behind her mask. "I've been here since 6 pm."

"I checked for observers, _"_ he said.

"I have better concealing charms than that," she said. "But if you want me to test your wards, I will be glad to do so, my Lord."

"Perhaps later," he said, and reached out to remove her mask. What a treasure trove this one was turning out to be! He was glad he had spared her. "Why did you call me?"

"I killed Black. I want my full Dark Mark," she said.

He didn't even mind how demanding she was being. "Give me your arm."

She bared her arm, and he drew a knife across his own wrist, bleeding onto her arm, and drawing the snake out of hiding. He hissed to the snake, who lapped up his blood and began to carve the skull into her arm.

"It was masterfully done, without a whisper of a suspicion on Pettigrew," the Dark Lord said. "Was it your first kill?"

"Yes, my Lord." 

He knew she was in pain. Most Death Eaters screamed through this part, but she merely breathed slowly and heavily.

"And how did it feel, committing murder for me?"

She looked up at him, her green eyes blazing. "Insufficient."

He smiled, and ran his fingers along her cheek, leaving bloody fingerprints behind. "Good answer."

She took a file out of her robes. "I have eight people. I need them to all die on the same night, with Dark Marks above them. I can't do it alone. Will you help me, my Lord?"

"Why do they need to die?"

"You know I am Unspeakable, recruited straight out of school," Lily Evans shook just slightly, as she hadn't shaken when her husband had been killed, or during the pain of being Marked. "I wondered how I could have worked for them without any of them figuring out I was being potioned. These eight knew. I was a fucking  _test subject."_ She closed her right hand around her Dark Mark, as if the pain of it could comfort her. "There is a room in the Department of Mysteries where they claim to study 'Love'. They were  _so_ pleased to have a clever intelligent witch ensnared by _Amortentia_ that they could study. Then they had run some tests on... the child... a few times, when I wasn't aware. And now that Potter is dead, they keep asking me questions to find out if I'm still in love with him, because they didn't know if the love potion effects would survive."

"They will be destroyed," Voldemort promised, in a low voice. "Which of them do you want for yourself?"

"Unspeakable Clemmon. The head of the project." Lily said.

"Two nights from now. I will give orders to make it slow and painful," Lord Voldemort said.

She bowed her head. "They said you took care of your people," she whispered. "It wasn't something I believed before."

"I will  _always_ take care of what belongs to me," he said. Only someone who once had nothing can possibly cherish every possession the way Tom Riddle does.

She pulled something else out of a pocket. A set of Gringotts keys, each with a parchment label. "I've been through the Potter vaults and split them in three. Two are for the boy - his trust vault, and the rest when he reaches his majority. He won't get his full inheritance because all the really interesting things I put aside for you, my Lord. Books, weapons, artefacts, staffs, wands. The Potters were a Light family, but they had a few fairly dark things hidden away. Plus about a third of the money."

"You... are quickly becoming a favourite," the Dark Lord said. "Show me how you hid from me."

* * *

The Daily Prophet headline read: **Unspeakable Massacre!**  An anonymous tip-off to Hector Skeeter, investigative journalist and muckraker extraordinaire, had told him that the eight were Unspeakables, and that was enough for him to paint quite a lurid picture. Especially when Skeeter included, "Could it be that these eight victims were chosen because they were members of Albus Dumbledore's infamous vigilante group the Phoenix Order? Doesn't this prove the folly of having wixes who are not trained Aurors attempt to stand against You-Know-Who?" This was exactly the sort of article Skeeter loved to write. The Ministry couldn't confirm or deny that any of the eight were Unspeakable, and Dumbledore couldn't confirm or deny that any were members of his own Order.

The article was everything that Lily had hoped for when sending the tip-off. It sent the DoM into a frenzy trying to discover their mole.

* * *

Of course in the utter devastation of the Department of Mysteries following the massacre, Snape found his application process fast-tracked. Dumbledore tried again to keep control of Snape, but Snape ignored his owls. Dumbledore decided that Severus was too dangerous to be left in freedom, but his accusations of Severus Snape fell on deaf ears. The DMLE couldn't follow up on every former Slytherin who was accused of being a Death Eater, not when they had so many active crime scenes to investigate. Dumbledore's only evidence was 'But he told me Voldemort said...' which was no evidence at all. Combined with a bare arm (The Dark Lord gave his espionage agents the ability to hide their own Dark Marks at will), Unspeakable Snape was soon left on his own.

He still didn't know that Lily was a Death Eater as well.

* * *

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The idea of blooding a Dark Mark to make it a full one was inspired by the wonderful "Time for a Change" by corvusdraconis and Dragon_and_the_Rose  
> https://archiveofourown.org/works/14632731/chapters/33819168
> 
> Lily: "Dammit, Author, I wanted to kill the whole DoM!"  
> Author: "Give it time, my darling."  
> Lily: "Murder! Death! Kill!"


	7. Chapter 7: Dark Adoption

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Walburga plucked Aries out of his arms and sat back on the settee. "Regulus, sit." The baby played with her necklaces while Regulus perched nervously on the nearest armchair. "Whatever story you and your cousin have cooked up, did you really think I would fall for it? You, have an affair with a muggleborn? You, forget to use the protection charm? And most outlandishly of all, you having an affair with a  _witch?_ "
> 
> "But..."
> 
> "Of course I _know_. I'm your _mother_. You were never as good at hiding your lad mags as you thought you were."
> 
> He is going to die. Right here. This is worse than Narcissa.

Regulus is not looking forward to this conversation.

Father is dead. But Mother is very much alive. And Mother will Not Approve. When Mother does Not Approve she is extremely scary.

But when it all comes down to it, Narcissa is scarier. Much much scarier.

He holds the baby close to him as he steps through the floo, and he can hear him  _(Aries, call him Aries)_ laugh as they spin through the fires, and finally emerge at Grimmauld Place.

"Where have you been?" Mother asks, in a cold voice. She's waiting. Of course she's waiting.

"I had to go to Norway," he says. "Surely Narcissa told you."

"She did. She did not tell me why, or why you have a brat..."

"My son. Your grandson," Regulus says. "Mother, this is Aries Lycoris Black. Aries, this is your Grandmother Walburga Black."

Mother stands and begins poking and examining the child, as if he were a beast for purchase, turning his face this way and that. "Half-blood? Who is the mother? Are you married?"

"She is - was - muggleborn, and she's dead. I didn't know about Aries until I got the express owl last week." Regulus took a deep breath. "It is up to you whether you will recognise him as your grandson. But if you refuse, I will be leaving."

Walburga plucked Aries out of his arms and sat back on the settee. "Regulus, sit." The baby played with her necklaces while Regulus perched nervously on the nearest armchair. "Whatever story you and your cousin have cooked up, did you really think I would fall for it? You, have an affair with a muggleborn? You, forget to use the protection charm? And most outlandishly of all, you having an affair with a  _witch?_ "

"But..."

"Of course I _know_. I'm your _mother_. You were never as good at hiding your lad mags as you thought you were."

He is going to die. Right here. This is worse than Narcissa.

"Is this Sirius's child?" she asks.

Regulus shook his head at the mention of Sirius. When he'd gone into that cave, he'd expected to die. Somehow, he was alive and Sirius was dead and buried. "He could be. All Narcissa said was that he's a Black and an orphan."

* * *

"Kreacher, lay out tea in the library, with milk and biscuits for Aries," Mother says. "Would you like to come upstairs with me, Aries?" she asks the child.

Aries looks up from his examination of her necklace and says, "Up."

"That's right. Up."

Regulus has never seen his mother interact with a child before, since he was one. He is utterly gobsmacked that she is being... maternal. Or rather, grandmaternal. He follows them upstairs, where tea is prepared, his and Mother's exactly the way they both like it. Aries has a sippy cup, that he can only assume was transfigured from something else. The boy sits on the floor, eating messily, after Mother cast a barrier spell around him to prevent him touching any of the books. Nearly all of the books are impervious to mundane food and drink stains. Some of the books, however, are quite capable of hurting a baby.

"Do you intend to live here with him?" Mother asks.

"If he is welcome..." Regulus says nervously.

"He's the Black heir - of _course_ he's welcome," Mother says, giving him the  _Look_ that Black women seem to wield so effectively. 

"You'll make him the heir?" Regulus says. "He's not pure!"

"We can do a Dark Adoption," Mother says. "You understand the ritual, correct?"

"A ritual using as many members of the adopting family as possible, in which each member sacrifices blood and magic. The prospective parent sacrifices blood, bone, and magic. Different from a Light Adoption, because of the sacrificial nature of the ritual. The blood, bone, and magic cannot be healed or regenerated and is transferred completely to the new family member," Regulus says.

"Mostly correct. Though it doesn't have to be the parent that sacrifices bone," Mother says, and lifts her right hand. "Accio goblin blade." The very valuable goblin made dagger flies off the wall, and Mother catches it, as expertly as any Seeker. Even though she's left-handed. Regulus realises what she's about to do just a moment to late, as he sees the blade flashing down, about to take off her wand hand at the wrist-

* * *

 _"WHAT WERE YOU THINKING AUNTIE?!!!!!!"_ Narcissa bellows at Mother.

Mother glares at Narcissa, who is healing three broken fingers on Mother's right hand.

"I was thinking that a wand hand would give the Black heir unprecedented power," she says sulkily. "If Kreacher hadn't stopped me..." 

"You were thinking you wanted to make a big dramatic show of support for Regulus and Aries instead of just saying 'I love you' like a  _normal_ parent!" Narcissa huffed. "Really, Auntie. And in the library? You would have gotten blood all over the books. Not to mention these lovely lilac robes."

Regulus is standing in the corner, holding a sobbing house-elf in his arms. He'd decided to out-source the Mother-wrangling to Narcissa and handle the devastated house-elf himself. Kreacher had blasted the dagger out of Mother's hand, but broken her fingers, and was wretched at knowing he'd hurt his Mistress. "Shh, it's okay, Kreacher, you are a good elf. You did the right thing," Regulus whispers.

"You may give the child a  _finger_ , and that is all," Narcissa says. "And it will be removed by _me,_ with proper  _preparation,_ and not in a bloody  _library._ Bella will help, of course, and -"

"No," Regulus says. "I don't want her to know Aries is adopted. And I certainly don't want to risk her madness infecting the child."

Narcissa sighs, but she doesn't object. "Very well. Bella will not be involved. And I'll bring Draco."

"That can't be safe!" Regulus protests.

"One drop of his blood only," Narcissa says. "It won't harm him. He's never participated in a Dark Magic ritual before, and isn't likely to for quite some time, and the child can certainly spare a drop of blood for family."

* * *

Regulus creates the potion himself. He has experimented enough with Dark Magic to have used human blood and bones in potion making before, but it is still pretty creepy grinding up his mother's pinky finger. She had insisted on the finger being from her wand hand, but Narcissa and Regulus insisted, with a bloody buggering  _war_ on, that she still be able to use her wand when they were done. This is their best compromise. (And Regulus still worries - he knows speed in duelling relies on a whole hand.) 

Aries and the cauldron are placed inside the ritual circle, and Regulus reminds everyone of the rules.

"You may cast  _one spell_ into the cauldron. Whatever spell you cast will be one that Aries will be precocious in, so nothing Dark or illegal, so for Salazar's sake, no Unforgivables," Regulus says.

Choosing the actual spell had been a matter of some pondering. Ideally, he'd have them all pour defensive magic into the cauldron, but whatever is cast will be  _sacrificed,_ so if he puts a  _Protego_ in, then he'll never be able to cast one again himself. That is what defines the Dark Arts - one is working with sacrificial magic rather than magic cast directly from one's own core.

It doesn't have to be a powerful spell - the point isn't to make Aries super powerful, whatever Mother thinks. The point of the ritual is to bind him to the family magic. So he has decided to stick with something simple - a prank spell he remembers having fun with when he was a first year that turns people's noses and ears different colours. He'd had so much fun with that one, even as a fairly dignified Slytherin. Aries will enjoy it.

Narcissa casts _Rictusempra_ at the cauldron, and smiles sweetly at him. He sighs. This is her revenge. The tickling jinx. Aries will now learn it early and precociously, and his cousin  _knows_ how badly he hates being hit with that one. He can't even entirely remember what he'd done to deserve it... just a general sense of having fucked up badly. If he knows that, but doesn't know why, that means he's been  _Obliviated_ , and he doesn't even know whether he deserves  _that_ or not. 

Mother's spell is the biggest surprise. " _EXPECTO PATRONUM!"_ she shouts, and a... _badger?!_... of all things... comes out of her wand. It sniffs around the room, examining Aries carefully, before diving into the cauldron.

Regulus stirs the cauldron as the three of them chant, and then he feeds a spoonful to Aries, who clearly doesn't like the taste, but drinks it anyway. There is a flash of light. Regulus steps into the circle and picks up his child.

"By Magic's Grace, Aries Lycoris Black is accepted into the House of Black, son of Regulus Arcturus Black and grandson of Walburga Nova Black, godson of Narcissa Titania Malfoy née Black. So mote it be."

"So mote it be," both Narcissa and Mother say.

* * *

Once they are back upstairs, and Kreacher has put Aries and Draco to bed in the new nursery at Grimmauld Place, Narcissa stares at Mother. "Since when could you cast a Patronus?!"

Mother looks sulky. "Since NEWT year. Then I saw it was a bloody buggering BADGER and never cast it again."

Regulus giggles. "Your Patronus is a Hufflepuff! That means your animagus form would probably have been a badger too!"

"I am _not_ an animagus!" she sniffs. "I never wanted to be! Animals are not dignified."

"Hufflepuff!" Narcissa says. "Oh Merlin! Now Aries is primed to Sort into Hufflepuff! You gave him a badger!"

"You take that back!" Mother screeches.

"Too late now..." Regulus says. "Ritual is done and drunk. Kid's up on the tapestry. My little Hufflepuff!"

**_"NOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!!!!!!!!!!!!!"_ **

* * *

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorting Hat: Aww, you're just a little cinnamon bun who wants to be friends with everyone aren't you? I think you'll fit in great in Hufflepuff.  
> Walburga: I'm a snake! Hiiisssssss! Snaaaake! Totally a snake!  
> Sorting Hat: Are you sure? The Hufflepuff Sett is such a warm and friendly place...  
> Walburga: FILTH! MUDBLOODS! TRAITORS!  
> Sorting Hat: ...Slytherin it is.  
> (later)  
> Walburga: _I can't believe that worked - I'll need to remember that line..._


	8. Chapter 8: Parenting

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> "Black... why did you bring a child to a Death Eater meeting?" the Dark Lord says.
> 
> "Mother was away when the summons came," Regulus says miserably, still with his forehead to the floor.
> 
> The baby starts crying, and Bellatrix immediately scoops him up. "Aww, poor ickle baby. You can't be here... not without your costume." She transfigured the boys clothes into Death Eater robes and mask. "There's a good wittle Death Eater." With his new costume, the child was startled out of his previous upset, and Bellatrix started tickling his tummy and making him laugh.

Several weeks after Aries was adopted, Regulus brings him over to Malfoy Manor for a playdate with Draco. While the boys chase the albino peacocks, minded by House Elves, Regulus collapses in the drawing room.

"Is anything wrong, Regulus?" Lucius asks.

"It's so hard taking care of a toddler!" Regulus wails.

Lucius sips at his tea. "Oh, do tell?"

"He gets into everything! He's like a niffler seeking out the worst and most dangerous Dark Relics in the house! Twice I've found him on top of the bookshelves in the library - the ones that are 12 feet high - when the ladder was put away. I don't know how he got there. I can't even begin to categorise all the things he's broken, but that list includes Kreacher's foot. And the messes - dear Salazar. Why is human faeces so much stinkier than that of any other species?... Lucius, are you  _laughing_ at me?!"

"Regulus, I'm going to tell you something that Narcissa has often told me. She spent nine months building Draco inside her body, ten hours pushing him out of her body, and eleven months feeding him from her body. After that, diaper duty is nothing."

Regulus shudders. He's very glad he missed out on the whole pregnancy/breastfeeding stage of parenting. "So I'm not allowed to whinge?"

"I wouldn't complain around your cousin if I were you," Lucius recommends. "You know how painful some of her hexes are."

* * *

The Dark Lord calls his Death Eaters together, and as he is instructing them for their duties for the next week,  _Regulus Black_ comes running in, his mask askew, with a Salazar-be-damned baby on his hip. 

"I'm sorry I'm sorry I'm late, I couldn't get a sitter," he babbles, and as he presses his forehead to the floor, the baby gets away from him and toddles around the other Death Eaters.

"Mumma?" the baby says. "Mumma! Mumma!"

Everyone is all robed and masked, but the Dark Lord knows that the baby is trying to get the attention of his Mudblood, Lily Evans. So the child still recognises his mother, even after the Dark Adoption. But does the mother...?

"I'm not your Mummy, kid," she says. "Go away."

The baby starts crying, and Bellatrix immediately scoops him up. "Aww, poor ickle baby. You can't be here... not without your costume." She transfigured the boys clothes into Death Eater robes and mask. "There's a good wittle Death Eater." With his new costume, the child was startled out of his previous upset, and Bellatrix started tickling his tummy and making him laugh.

"Black... why did you bring a child to a Death Eater meeting?" the Dark Lord says.

"Mother was away when the summons came," Regulus says miserably, still with his forehead to the floor.

"But you have a house elf?" the Dark Lord says.

"The house elf obeys the child's every order!" Regulus says. "I can't leave them alone together!"

"The boy can barely talk."

"He can talk well enough to say 'Want that' while pointing to a cursed artifact," Regulus says. "Or even a wand or a knife or a pouch of floo powder."

"I hear you," Cantankerous Nott says. "They are a terror at this age. It takes a specially trained Nanny-elf to handle children. Normal house elves can't differentiate between obedience and safety."

"It _would_ be convenient if I could bring Pansy with me," says Lucretia Parkinson. "Not every meeting, but just occasionally."

"I agree," says Bertram Crabbe.

"Maybe we could split the Death Eaters with children off into their own branch?" hisses Severus. "And allow those of us without such... _encumbrances_... to get on with our work?"

"Those  _emcumbrances..._ as you so quaintly put it, are the future of our nation," says the Dark Lord. "I would rather encourage than discourage procreation among my followers."

"If you want to encourage us, can we have the meetings earlier? Only these late nights are really rough. My wife really hates it. Little Marc is a light sleeper, and the apparition pops always wake him up. My wife close to saying it's the Dark Lord or her," says Adrienne Flint.

"Narcissa would never say _that_ , but it has been rather difficult to find time to work on a second child..." Lucius says. 

"Maybe we could have a singles mixer for those of us who... haven't found a parenting partner yet?" Barty Crouch Jr says, flicking his tongue out as he gives a sidelong glance at Regulus.

The Dark Lord nudges Regulus's forehead with his foot. "Get up, Black. Bella is trying to teach your son how to cast Unforgiveables."

"SHE WHAT?!" Regulus bellows.

Bellatrix has given little Aries her wand and is helping him do the wand movement for  _Imperio._ "When you master this, Papa will have to give you all of the cookies!" Bella cooes.

"Cookies!" Aries says, as he waves the wand. "Papa, cookies!"

Regulus plucks the wand from Aries's hand. "No wand. No cookies. Bella, if you ever want to see your nephew again, you'll stop trying to get him thrown in Azkaban."

"Want cookies!" Aries wails.

"Oh for Merlin's sake, Regulus... if you can't get a sitter next time, just stay home! You're allowed family leave! Just tap your wand twice above the left eye socket of the skull and once on the tail of the snake to let me know. That goes for sick leave as well. Anyone using that method just to skive off will be team  _Crucio'd."_

"Thank you, my Lord," Regulus spun on the spot and Disapparated with his son. 

"Does anyone else have any... pressing business?"

Evan Rosier raised his lit wand. "Could we maybe set up a suggestion box?"

_How is this my life?_

* * *

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Suggestions:  
> * More fashionable robes, more form fitting and appropriate for duelling. Maybe with a logo?  
> * Why haven't we killed Dumbledore yet?  
> * Hire a child-minder for meeting times  
> * Or cursed his stupid flashy robes to burn him as badly as they've burnt our retinas over the years  
> * Can someone please tell Bella not to baby talk at anyone but babies? It's really gross.  
> * Begging your Lordship's pardon, but those of us of more advanced years sometimes have difficulty offering you obeisance as we would like. Could we have cushioning charms for prolonged kneeling sessions?  
> * Meetings should have refreshments - we can put out a sign up sheet  
> * Or maybe just put a hair-removal curse on him, so his stupid beard falls off. That would be hilarious! We could put it in his lemon drops  
> * What's our end-game? Apocalypse, or government takeover? I thought it was the former, but your talk about procreation makes me think maybe I was wrong. If it's the latter, then I believe we need to pivot from murder and terrorism towards education and infrastructure fairly soon, before we've dipped below a viable population threshold. Check my arithmancy work, attached, to see the issue....


	9. Chapter 9: The Lethifold in the Room

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Hey, what's going on with the Order of the Phoenix in all this? 
> 
> (Sadly, it's mostly serious, because it's Peter's pov, and he just doesn't bring the funny like Regulus does...)

Lily Evans and Peter Pettigrew always sat on opposite sides of the room at the Order of the Phoenix meetings, so they could try and watch everyone’s faces. Peter hated it. If he could have sat next to Lily, he could have shared a hidden eye roll or a groan or a sympathetic shudder at the pompous idiocy going on. Instead, he had Dedalus Diggle on one side and Mundungus Fletcher on the other. Lily fared better, he could see, stuck between Alice Longbottom and Minerva McGonagall. Well, perhaps that was relative. Certainly they smelled better than Dedalus’s hats (steeped in mothballs) and Dung’s failure to bathe, but he could see that they were both plying her with unwanted condolences.

“Are you sure you’re okay to be here?” McGonagall said more than once. “No one would think less of you for stepping back.”

“I know but… this is where I need to be. I need to fight.” Her words were spoken quietly, but with enough honest passion to convince anyone. After all, she was speaking the exact truth.

The meeting was more inane and meandering than usual. In the last month, they’d lost the Prewett twins, who Peter realised now had been the heart and light of the Order. They had been good men, full of joy. Molly was devastated. It especially showed in the fact that she hadn’t brought enough food to feed an army. There were a few people insensitive enough to tell her that if Lily could handle losing her husband and sons, she should do better with her loss. As if grief had rules. Peter noted that the most insensitive were those who had not lost close family members in the war yet. Frank fucking Longbottom was being quite the jackass. A spoilt pureblood heir like Potter and Black, he no doubt would have been in the Marauders if he’d been in their year. And now he felt aggrieved because he was denied Molly’s scones, despite her grief and her 7 children and the fact that he was rich enough to have house elves on call to make him scones whenever he wanted.

And speaking of Potter and Black, their loss had cut a hole in the Order as well. They may have been monsters of the highest order, but to the Order they were the Golden Boys of Gryffindor, who could do no wrong - at least until Black ‘betrayed’ his best friend and got him killed.

“Lily, my dear, any news from the Department of Mysteries?” Dumbledore asked.

“Albus, that’s confidential,” Lily said.

“Surely, among friends…” he said genially. 

Dorcas snorted. “Helga’s heartburn, does the name ‘Unspeakable Evans’ mean ‘Blabbermouth Evans’ to you, Albus?”

The table erupted into outrage that Lily Evans, a capable powerful adult witch, had retaken her original name. Peter wanted to scream.

“But James has just died! How could you?” Molly wailed, louder than anyone.

“Actually,” Alice said. “Lily always said she was going to keep her name, or at the most, hyphenate. It surprised me that she changed it when she married.”

Lily turned her green eyes to focus on Alice. “Honestly, that whole day is a blur. I cannot for the life of me remember how I was convinced into doing it the traditional way.”

“But it was your husband’s name! Your son’s name!” Molly said. 

“And I shared it for a time. But Evans was my name all my life, and it’s the name I earned my Charms Mastery under.” Lily said. Peter didn’t know how she was restraining herself from doing murder. 

This stupid debate went on for way too long, and Peter got up and wandered out into the garden of the cottage where the meeting was being held. He’d forgotten who this one had belonged to. One of the members who had died and left it to the Order.

After a few minutes, Dorcas came and sat down beside him. “You know, everyone is ignoring the lethifold in the room.”

“Oh?” Peter said.

“We’ve lost,” she said. “We should be proposing a cease-fire with the Dark Lord, for the purpose of peace talks. Anything else is just adding to the bloodshed.”

Peter blinked. “You think…” Then he realised… she’d just called him the Dark Lord, not Voldemort. 

She put her hand on his left arm. Not on the inside, thankfully - even through clothes, it was never pleasant when someone who wasn’t in the Dark Order touched his Mark - but on the outside of his arm. “A few of us think. I have a letter. If you can play owl…?”

Peter didn’t dare meet her eyes. He just gave a slight nod. She handed him a sealed letter, and he slipped it into an inside pocket. 

* * *

He didn’t know how long he sat there, waiting for the shaking in his hands to stop. At least one member of the Order knew he was a Death Eater. Maybe more. Maybe he would go back inside and find their wands turned on him. He might get away in his animagus form. But he might not. 

And was this a real offer of surrender? It could just be an elaborately trapped letter - he’d certainly check with every detection spell he knew before even mentioning it to the Dark Lord. 

Should he go back inside, or just leave now? This would probably be his last meeting (and thank Merlin for that) but there were people in there that he might never see again, except on the other side of a battlefield. He’d want to say his goodbyes. 

“... I simply thought, my dear, that an Invisibility Cloak would be an invaluable asset to our active fighters.” The voice was Dumbledore’s, as he entered the garden with Lily.

“I don’t know where it is, Albus.” Lily said. Peter smirked. He knew that Dumbledore, while calling everyone by their first name (if not the infuriating ‘my boy’ or ‘my dear’), quite resented other people not calling him by title and surname. “It wasn’t in the cottage in Godric’s Hollow, when I packed everything up. It’s possible Sirius had it - they were always passing it back and forth. Or perhaps it was stolen that night.”

“That’s a shame. It was quite a valuable artifact,” Dumbledore said. “To think it might have passed into Voldemort’s hands…”

Peter felt his Mark burn, and he knew Lily’s would be doing the same, to punish them for hearing their Lord’s name spoken. (And honestly, what was the Dark Lord’s issue with names? He wouldn't allow his birth name to be spoken. And now he wouldn’t allow his chosen name to be spoken.)

“If you’re quite finished, Albus?” Lily said. “I’ll see you next time. Peter, do you think your mother is up for a visit today? I haven’t seen her this year.”

Peter stood up and offered his arm. “She’d be delighted to see you, Lily.” And Lily apparated them away. 

* * *

They did have a lovely visit with Mum, and Lily was far more patient with her condolences than she’d been at the Order. 

“It’s so good to see you doing better, Mrs Pettigrew. The last time we met, you were quite thin and pale.”

“Oh yes - Petey is such a good boy! I don’t know where he’s found this new apothecary, but the potions are better than I’ve ever had before. They are always delivered on time, and the quality is the best,” Mum gushed. “The gentleman who delivers them is the nicest fellow. I’ve finally gotten him to come in and take tea - he always looks so overworked.”

Peter coughed. That ‘nicest fellow’ was Giles Jugson, one of the most vicious torturers in the Dark Order. Thankfully, he was under direct orders by the Dark Lord to treat Mrs Pettigrew with complete courtesy and respect at all times.

* * *

Peter told Lily about the conversation with Dorcas after they left. 

“Do you believe it?” she asked.

“I don’t know,” he said. “If it was going to be a sting, I would have expected someone different. Dorcas is…”

“Not one of Dumbledore’s favourites,” Lily said. “Not a Gryffindor.”

“Yeah. He’d have sent… maybe Arthur? He could sell it on the ‘I want my kids to grow up in a peaceful world’ angle.”

“He could have before the Prewetts. Molly would not happily surrender now. If she wasn’t nursing a babe, she’d probably be on the warpath.”

“Frank wouldn’t do it, even as a sting. Minerva maybe…”

“Anyway, we’ll test the letter. Then we’ll tell him, and he can decide whether to open it. If he doesn’t want it, that’s the end of it.”

“And if he does want it… maybe it’ll be the end of the war…” Peter said.

He watched Lily’s fists clench… and he thought that maybe she wouldn’t be as ready to see the end of the war as he was. She still wanted to burn it all down.

* * *

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Albus: *sweating, wondering why neither of the Chosen Babies have slain Voldemort yet*  
> Molly: *crying, missing her brothers*  
> Mundungus: *looking for something to steal*  
> Alice: *noticing that something more is up with Lily than just grief*  
> Alastor: *still getting the hang of his new eyeball*  
> Frank: *wanting some damn scones*
> 
> Dorcas: So, Peter, wanna take our terms of surrender to your boss?


	10. Chapter 10: The Brain Trust

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> It took hours. The Dark Lord's original manifesto was a complete mess, full of angry rants and slurs against... well, everyone. Not to mention the ink blots that made it barely legible. So many ink blots.
> 
> Trust Lily to say what they were all thinking. "Were you high on potions when you wrote this?"
> 
> "Er... maybe?" the Dark Lord said. Had his ears gone pink?! "I... can't really remember. I had just left Hogwarts after Dumbledore turned me down for the Defense teaching position, and basically made me feel like I was a worthless little orphan mudblood."
> 
> "So... this is less a manifesto and more of a 'Fuck you Dumbledore' letter?" Lucretia said.

Severus settled in to the Death Eater's meeting, and was a bit puzzled at the combination of people in the room. Everyone still had their masks on, but it wasn't the usual Inner Circle. He recognised Barty, and he thought one of the women was Narcissa, but the rest he wasn't sure about. 

The Dark Lord waved at them irritably. "Get up. We have a lot of work to do." The seven Death Eaters rose from their kneeling position on the floor, some of them more gracefully than others, and followed the Dark Lord to another room where he had a table set up. "Lose the masks. This isn't a raid."

Severus removed his mask, and looked across the table as the others did as well. Barty Crouch Jr. Narcissa Black Malfoy. Lucretia Parkinson. Peter Pettigrew. Walburga Black.

And next to him.... Lily Evans.

He gaped at her. "Lily?"

She smirked. "Surprise."

"Yes, yes, save the sappy stuff for later," Voldemort said grumpily. "The seven of you are the most intelligent members of my operation, and I'm making you my Brain Trust. Do not tell anyone else about the membership of this group or even its existence. I'm making you responsible for working out our response to this." He waved a hand, and parchment appeared in front of each of them. Severus read his copy.

 

 

> To the Dark Lord:
> 
> I am writing on behalf of a subset of Order members and Ministry employees who recognise that the war needs to end. Though there are individuals among us who are not willing to stop fighting until you are dead, most of us are willing to negotiate. 
> 
> We would like to have a cease-fire of 7 days so that we can discuss terms of surrender.
> 
> Sincerely,
> 
> Dorcas Meadowes,  
>  For Peace in Wix Britain

 

"Do we believe this is serious?" Lucretia asked.

"Yes," Lily said. "Dorcas isn't one of Dumbledore's direct recruits. She's a Hufflepuff, and he never had much use for anyone who wasn't a Gryffindor."

"If it's serious, then we make a list of demands," Narcissa said. "They'll have their own as well, but we're in a position of strength, and should get a lot more of ours."

"Albus Dumbledore," Severus said. "We have to demand him. There can be no peace as long as he's free. If he's dead, the opposition will crumble."

"I agree," said the Dark Lord. "We must have Dumbledore. That's the first point. Two, I will be recognised as Lord Slytherin."

"And then, my Lord, we will make you Minister of Magic?" Barty said.

"Salazar, no! We can put Lucius in that spot. I want Hogwarts," the Dark Lord said.

"Why isn't Lucius here, my Lord?" asked Peter.

The Dark Lord rolled his eyes. "This is the Brain Trust not the Money Trust. I put Lucius where I want someone who is good at using money to buy influence. But I do not use him to keep secrets or help make decisions."

"They will want protections for muggleborns," Lily said. 

"Oh for Merlin's sake - why does everyone think I want to kill  _muggleborns?"_ The Dark Lord said. "It's  _muggles_ I hate! I want to outlaw marriages between magicals and muggles - it's right there in my manifesto! There's nothing in there about muggleborns! They are _magicals_ , they are supposed to leave the muggle world behind and marry someone of magical blood!"

"It's possible there's been some confusion, my Lord" Walburga said.

"Quite a lot of confusion," Severus said.

"Really, until you accepted my service, I was certain you wanted me dead, my Lord," Lily said. 

Walburga cleared her throat. "Perhaps we should start by going over your manifesto."

* * *

It took hours. The Dark Lord's original manifesto was a complete mess, full of angry rants and slurs against... well, everyone. Not to mention the ink blots that made it barely legible. So many ink blots.

Trust Lily to say what they were all thinking. "Were you high on potions when you wrote this?"

"Er... maybe?" the Dark Lord said. Had his  _ears_ gone pink?! "I... can't really remember. I had just left Hogwarts after Dumbledore turned me down for the Defense teaching position, and basically made me feel like I was a worthless little orphan mudblood."

"So... this is less a manifesto and more of a 'Fuck you Dumbledore' letter?" Lucretia said. 

The Dark Lord denied it, but after they had read, and deciphered it, it did seem to be a 'Fuck you Dumbledore' letter. 

"All in favour of throwing this out completely and starting over?" Narcissa said. "Don't look at me like that, my Lord, this 59 page rant cannot possibly be the basis for a new government. You went off for 8 pages about making it mandatory for centaurs to wear trousers, then pondering whether it should be on their front or back legs."

"I'm not terribly comfortable with all of the goblin slurs," Peter confessed. "It's probably a good thing no one ever really read this. We could have had another goblin war on our hands."

"They refused to let me into Salazar Slytherin's vaults!" the Dark Lord complained. "They said I'd need Ministry recognition before they'd consider it at all!"

"Oh Jesus," Lily said, swearing muggle-style. "You went into Gringotts and insulted the goblins, didn't you? They never ask for human recognition for anything they do."

The Dark Lord looked off to one side. "I may have... been... a little bit demanding..."

Severus raised an eyebrow. "And by a 'little bit...' you mean?"

"I may have only  _Crucio'd_ a couple of tellers..." he admitted.

* * *

Eventually, the Brain Trust worked up a simple list of demands and felt as prepared for the meeting with Meadowes as could be. The Dark Lord ordered them all to get some rest. But Severus had to pull Lily aside. He had to know...

"When did you...?"

"That night," Lily said. "I've been one of you ever since he killed Potter for me." 

"And... you're okay with this? Everything we do?"

"Everything but putting trousers on centaurs. They'd get awfully grouchy," Lily said. She caught his wrist, and let her thumb rub over the tail of his Dark Mark, sending a deep jolt of pleasure through him. "Severus..." He tried to hold in a groan, wondering if she knew what she was doing to him, then he caught her eyes.

Her green eyes half-lidded, demanding. Her skin flushed under her freckles. Her pale lips parted slightly. Her smouldering red hair tumbling down over her shoulders. There was nothing artificial about her. Not a touch of the cosmetic charms she'd started using after she'd fallen under Potter's control. Even her hair was tangled from her habit of twisting her hands through her hair when she was concentrating.

Of course she knew what she was doing to him. He was hers for the asking. He always had been.

"Lily...?"

"Yes, I'm sure," she said. Her thumb ran over his Mark once more, and he pulled her to him, crashing his lips onto hers the way he'd dreamt of since he was 13. 

She held onto his arm with one hand, and the other fisted into his hair. It was raw and needy and the magic of their Marks hummed through them, urging them closer.

* * *

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Things in Voldemort's manifesto:  
> * Are House Elves relatedto Santa's Elves? Howcome I nevergot any Christmas presents?  
> * The Malfoys are all so shiiiiny. I just love to pet their hair! Pretty people!  
> * Dumblefumblearsewipe don'tthink I ever forgotforgave you sending me back to get bombed every summerand I wasn'tallwed to usea wand to defend msyelf but fuck you I got a spare from thesecret room in HoggyHoggyHogwarts so I didn't haetheTace  
> * Why did we ever let them have all the goldbloody bastards nasty creatures can't standgobos  
> * That fucking fephenicks Fox Fawks Fawkes Guy Fawkes Remember Remember the 5th of November Gunpowder Treason and Plot can't blow up Dumblefawks because of HoggyHoggy don't want to hurt her. Fuck Fawkes.  
> * Dumblefumblefuckwad and his muggle-loving fenicks and I'm going to kill them all kill them filth muggles hate muggles no more muggles no more muggle lovers  
> * I love werewolfand vampire fiction muggles write the best smut books with vampirestoobad the real thingisn't as good muggles have good imaginationssmut is fun to read wank books  
> * Gobgobgobley nasty filthy beady eyes charge them an ugly tax  
> * I miss Hogwarts :( Why is Dumblefumblebumlefuck so mean?
> 
> * * *
> 
> Author: Isn't it a bit soon for you to rebound into a new relationship, Evans?  
> Lily: Fuck you, Author, I want Severus!  
> Author: Er...  
> Severus: The lady has spoken, Author. Politely fuck the fuck off.  
> Author: Right then. Fucking off....


	11. Canoodling

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The Brain Trust negotiates an armistice with Peace for Wix Britain

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I've decided to start using this space for fanfic recommendations:
> 
> [Consider Obliviation](https://archiveofourown.org/works/17474294) by me  
> Removing an entire person from a family takes longer than Hermione expects. What happens if her father wakes up before she's finished? Can she go through with Obliviating him?
> 
> [The Fine Art of Collaborative Storytelling](https://archiveofourown.org/works/18435458) by MostlyHubris  
> Harry, Ron, and Hermione are adventurers on a quest to save the world, and they’ll do so using the most unconventional methods they can imagine.
> 
> Tom Riddle is an exasperated dungeon master and ready for this campaign to be over.

"Will you two stop _canoodling_?" the Dark Lord growled at Lily and Severus, who were practically sitting in one another's laps feeding breakfast to each other. "We have work to do."

Lily smirked and gave Severus one last raspberry jam flavoured kiss, before sitting demurely in her own seat. Severus still looked dazed and awe-struck.

"No. Other side of the table with you, my favourite mudblood," the Dark Lord ordered. "And no footsie either. Gah, it's like being prefect all over again and pulling people out of broom closets. Save it for later."

"Yes, my Lord," the two lovers chorused in unison. 

Walburga chuckled. "Those were good times, Tom."

"Shut up shut up shut up," the Dark Lord said. 

"What? I just have fond memories of some of our prefect patrols together... and some of those broom closets."

"SHUT UP!"

Lucretia Parkinson and Narcissa shared amused glances over their coffee.

"Auntie, we simply must get together sometime for you to share some of your Hogwarts memories," Narcissa murmured quietly. 

"I hate you all. I hate you all. How did this happen? I spare ONE BABY and suddenly my own followers are walking all over me?"

"My Lord, it's in your new manifesto that you will be sparing _all_ of the magical babies," Lily pointed out.

"... I hate you all."

Barty walked in then, still in his footie pyjamas, hair sticking up everywhere, and eyes bleary because he stayed up late reading the latest issue of The Journal for Advanced Arithmancy. "Coooofffeeeee..." he groaned. "When does this diplomacy shite start anyway? Will there be time for me to take a shower?"

* * *

There was not time. There was barely time for Barty to hastily transfigure his pyjamas into robes as the portkey activated bringing in Peter Pettigrew and the four defectors who were choosing to negotiate with him - Dorcas Meadowes, Dempster Wiggleswade, Janice Fawley and Aberforth Dumbledore.

Every wand in the room was turned on the barman, before realising it was not his more famous brother, and then, by agreement, everyone set their wands on the table and set to work on an armistice agreement. 

"We can't just condemn Albus Dumbledore to extrajudicial punishment!" Meadowes insisted.

"He did so to me!" the Dark Lord said. 

"Well, you're... you're a Dark Lord! Everyone knows you're supposed to fight a Dark Lord!" Wiggleswade said.

Barty was frustrated at this man, but he was one of the representatives of the Ministry. If they could get the Ministry's agreement, the rest of the nation would fall in line. 

Lily said, "We are going to issue an offer for amnesty for everyone who has fought against the Dark Lord. Whoever does not accept this offer, and swear their allegiance to our Lord, will be guilty of sedition and treason. And then, we can issue a warrant for his arrest. Will that satisfy you?"

"I'd be happier if we took him into custody to await his decision about accepting amnesty." To everyone's surprise, that came from Albus's brother. "You - I mean, we'll - have a better chance of achieving peace if he isn't out there stirring up war."

"Protected custody," Wiggleswade insisted. "Not Azkaban."

"Put him in Nurmengard, next to Grindelwald," Abeforth said. But he didn't explain why he thought that fitting.

 Janice Fawley jotted down a few notes. "Nurmengard is fine with me. Now. What can you tell me about the Marriage Law I've heard hints of around the Ministry?"

 

The silence that fell in the room was heavy. Barty gulped as he could feel magic gathering around both the Dark Lord and Lily Evans.

It was Evans who spoke first. "What. Marriage. Law." She was glaring at Fawley, not at the Dark Lord.

"The Arithmancy shows we're facing a demographic crisis soon," Fawley said. "I had heard rumours that the Dark Lord intended to deal with this by passing a Marriage Law, requiring..."

"Who is spreading these rumours? Where did you hear them?" the Dark Lord said. His voice was icy. Barty didn't know whether Evans or the Dark Lord was going to explode first, but he was pretty sure one of them was going to.

"Just... around..." she said.

"Names," Evans said. "And were they in favour or not?"

"Umbridge. In favour. Pilliwickle. Horrified. Thicknesse. Undecided." she was whispering by now.

"Let me make one thing clear," the Dark Lord said. "I am aware of the Arithmancy, and I will be looking for ways to promote marriage and childbearing. But I will never,  _never_  condone forced marriages. There are some lines I _will not cross_."

Fawley gulped. The magic was still heavy in the air.

Narcissa snapped her fingers, making Barty jump. "Dobby! Tea and crumpets for everyone. Let's have a 20 minute break."

* * *

The Dark Lord, thankfully, stormed out of the room. Severus had pulled Evans into his arms and seemed to be cooling her down.

"Nice jammie-jams, Barty," someone said. He turned to see Aberforth smirking at him. He looked down to see that he'd lost hold of his transfiguration during the magic stand off.

"Oh Merlin!" He waved his wand a few times, and finally managed to coax his flannel pyjamas back into robes. "I overslept."

"Up too late reading, right? You were the only kid who came to the bar with textbooks and nursed a single drink all night while the other kids were getting pissed."

"Yeah... too many books, not enough time," Barty confessed. "Are you really okay with locking up your brother?"

Aberforth's look darkened. "Watch me."

 

* * *

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Author: So, Walburga, dear, tell me more about you and Tom and these broom closets.  
> Walburga: Now, now, a lady doesn't kiss and tell...  
> Author: That suggests there WAS kissing?  
> Walburga: If there was, and I emphasise IF, would you blame me? I mean, those lips...  
> Dark Lord: SHUT UP SHUT UP SHUT UP!!!!!  
> Author: And you are a widow now, aren't you, Wally?  
> Walburga: Not that it's any of your business, but it happens that I am.  
> Author: And Tom is single....  
> Dark Lord: SHUT UP SHUT UP SHUT UP I HATE YOU BOTH STOP SHIPPING ME!!!!!!!!


	12. Armistice

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Regulus reads the paper and gets a surprise.
> 
> * * *

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Recommendations (both crack):  
> [The Art of War by lary](https://archiveofourown.org/works/2393009)  
>  _It was time for the Final Battle. Again._
> 
> [Sex Ed at Hogwarts](https://archiveofourown.org/works/18237035) by me  
>  _It's the job of the Heads of Houses to teach the little brats about the facts of life - a job that some take to better than others...._
> 
> * * *

"Papa! Papa!" 

Regulus had a bleary moment to brace himself before Aries, in his adorable niffler jammies, had clambered into the bed. "Good morning, sweetie-pie!" he said, lifting his son over his head and making him laugh. However unexpected parenthood had been, he really loved the boy, and it seemed that the boy loved him too. "Why do you have to wake up so early?"

"Up! Up! Kechur up!" 

At that, Kreacher popped into the room. "Does Little Master Aries need Kreacher?"

"Kechur!" Aries said happily, and leapt off the bed and into the house-elf's arms. Regulus couldn't imagine how Kreacher could catch Aries when the toddler was nearly the size as the house-elf, but he supposed it was part of their magic. "Moring!"

"Kreacher, is Mother awake?"

"Mistress Walburga is out. Mistress says she has many important meetings and not to call her unless Master Regulus or Little Master Aries are dying." Kreacher looked at him carefully. "Are you dying, Master Regulus?"

"No, Kreacher. I am well. Can you make breakfast please, while I get Aries dressed?"

 

Kreacher knew by now that it took at least an hour for Master Regulus to deal with the Little Master in the morning. Little Master did not like baths. Little Master argued over the clothing for the day. Little Master usually made at least one mess. But eventually, his two favourite people made it downstairs. Kreacher levitated Aries into his baby chair, and used a sticking charm to keep him there. Master Regulus sat down with his coffee and newspaper.

Then he spit coffee out everywhere.

"WHAT? HOW?"

"Agin, Papa! Agin!" Aries chortled!

 

Regulus stared at the newspaper headlines that splashed across the entire front page:

 

###  **WAR IS OVER!**

###  **MINISTER BAGNOLD SIGNS ARMISTICE!**

###  **DEATH EATERS AND PHOENIX ORDER TO DISBAND!**

 

As he looked, the words faded and there was a picture of Minister Millicent Bagnold, signing papers, with a dark skinned woman he sort of vaguely recognised (the caption identified her as Dorcas Meadowes) and as the woman stepped aside...

"MOTHER!" he shrieked.

"Were Gamma?" Aries said.

Lady Walburga Black was part of this armistice deal!

"Grandmama is in the paper," Regulus said wearily, and held up the picture so Aries could see her, dressed in her finest court robes and understated (but ridiculously valuable) jewellery, and a tasteful hat. "She could have told me," he grumbled.

* * *

Business was absolutely booming at the Hogs Head, the Three Broomsticks - pretty much every tavern in Magical Britain, with partying carrying over into the muggle areas as well. Abeforth had already had to shut down his public floo simply because it was too crowded for anyone to safely floo in. He could not imagine how bad it must be at the Leaky Cauldron, but then, he had never wanted to live and work in London.

"What does Albus think?" people kept asking him. And he would just shrug. He hadn't faced his brother yet.

Three days earlier he had told his brother he needed to meet with him urgently - that there was someone upstairs who had crucial war information. That was exactly the sort of bait that Albus couldn't resist jumping after. Abeforth told him to go up to room 3, followed him up, and once Albus opened the door, Albus was disarmed and hit with 4 stunners. Dorcas magically stripped him and banished his clothes and toys to another room, then put a new robe on him. Janice Fawley took his hand and activated the portkey to Nurmengard. 

It saddened him that Voldemort could be trusted with an armistice when his own brother couldn't. But Voldemort had actually sworn a magical oath before his eyes, and it was the same oath that Albus would have to swear before he'd be allowed out. The same oath all war combatants would have to swear if they wanted to avoid being tried on war crimes.

"I swear by Magic's Grace, from this day forth, that I shall make peace between myself and all the people of magical Britain. There will be peace, wheresoever we meet. Should any future strife arise, it shall be settled within the law. I will do no harm to any magical being outside the law. So mote it be."

Abeforth never would have imagined that Voldemort would swear such an oath. But he had, and the flash of magic seemed to prove that he meant it. 

He highly doubted his brother would ever do the same.

* * *

By the time Walburga Black arrived home that night, it was well after midnight. Aries and Kreacher were long asleep, but Regulus was sitting up by the fireplace.

"Well?" he said, in a stroppy tone.

"Well what?" she said, taking off her had and tossing it onto the sofa. "Pour me some firewhiskey, would you love?"

"Why didn't you tell me?" he said. He summoned the firewhiskey and poured her a shot as she kicked her designer shoes off. 

"Because it was a  _secret_ negotiation between  _certain_ individuals in three different camps, and you weren't one of them," Walburga said. "Don't sulk, dearest. It'll give you lines."

"The paper didn't have much information," he said.

She peeled off her stockings, and finally flopped on the sofa. "The Minister is going to call new elections, while endorsing the candidate from the Peace for Wix Britain party. Albus Dumbledore has left the country. The Dark Lord has taken the new peace oath, and is going to disband the Death Eaters. There are several legislative matters that were agreed as priorities, such as protections for dark creatures and making certain types of magic legal again. On the Light side, they get a legal agreement that all magicals are equal, no matter blood status. Both sides agreed on promoting marriages and fertility, with tax breaks and other soft incentives. There are some ugly rumours of forced marriage and child bearing laws, but thankfully none of the serious Ministerial candidates think that is ethical or viable."

"And who are the candidates?"

"Cornelius Fudge, Crouch Sr is being named by some, though I'm sceptical that he'll take the oath, someone named Umbridge, though she's so horrible she's not going to make it past the run-offs, and your mother."

"Wait, what?" Regulus dropped the bottle of Ogden's.

Walburga smirked and summoned the firewhiskey over to herself before any of it spilled. "You're looking at the next Minister for Magic, Reggie."

"How? You've never been political!"

"Oh sweetie - if you were invited to ladies teas you'd know that's not true. With Bagnold and the Dark Lord supporting me, I can't lose. I do have your vote, yes?"

"Of course, Mother. I'm just... surprised," Regulus said. "Yes, surprised. Stunned really. No one expects their mother to end the war and take over the government."

"You thought I'd be here for free babysitting forever?"

"No! Well, sort of!"

"You need to get a nanny-elf."

"Why didn't the Dark Lord become Minister for Magic?" Regulus asked.

"Oh Tom would be miserable in that job," Walburga said.

Regulus shuddered. "Mother... do not... _ever_... call the Dark Lord by his first name. Just... _don't_."

Walburga laughed. "Get some sleep, Reggie. I've got an early press conference tomorrow, and I need to have my loving son and grandson at my side to make me look relatable."

"I hate you. Please tell me you're making Narcissa do this too."

"Oh sweetie... this was all her idea."

* * *

 

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Narcissa: Stand up straight, Reg  
> Regulus: I am!  
> Narcissa: Your tie is crooked  
> Regulus: I have a toddler!  
> Narcissa: Oh Salazar, you have jam on your collar. Let me spell it off.  
> Regulus: Narcissa!  
> Narcissa: Stop fussing! You're going to make Auntie look bad!  
> Regulus: *sulks*  
> *meanwhile*  
> Aries: *is perfectly dressed and groomed*  
> Hector Skeeter: Do you love your Grandma?  
> Aries: Gramma! Wuv Gramma!  
> Skeeter: Can you blow Grandma some kisses?  
> Aries: *blows kisses to camera*  
> Skeeter: Right. We don't need your son at all. I've got all I need from your grandson, Lady Black.  
> *next day*  
> Daily Prophet: ARIES BLACK SAYS GRANDMOTHER HAS HIS VOTE! *pictures of cute toddler being cute, charms all of Wix Britain*


	13. Phoenix

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The Dark Lord disbands the Death Eaters
> 
> * * *

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Recommendation:  
> [Muggle Management](https://archiveofourown.org/works/13695783) by LadyWinterlight, NerdyKat  
>  _Summary: What happens if Hermione notices signs of abuse in Harry during first year? The Wizarding World may not have laws against it, but the Muggle World certainly does..._
> 
> * * *

The Dark Lord called his Death Eaters together. When they arrived, they found him with a young phoenix on his shoulder. 

"Rise, my friends, my faithful followers," he said. "You have seen the headlines. We are to disband."

The outcry was expected, and he let it take its course, before he spoke again.

"I will never abandon you, just as you never abandoned me. But our first aims have been fulfilled. I have arranged for Walburga Black to take over as Minister of Magic, and the armistice agreement has included many of our dearest goals. In order to do this, the Death Eaters will be disbanded. Those who wish may join the Peace party, led by Lady Black and Lord Slytherin."

There was less of an outcry at this, more excited and confused talking. Lord Slytherin decided to interrupt this.

"I will call you up one at a time to remove your Dark Mark. You will also be required to take the Peace Vow in front of the head of the DMLE if you have ever been accused of war crimes. Combatants on the other side will have to as well."

"How will we know when to meet?" Rabastan complained.

"There will be a mailing list! Sign up at the door if you want to be on it!" Slytherin said impatiently. "Probably a regularly scheduled meeting time as well. I heard enough complaints about that!"

It was arduous work, removing the Marks. They had been intended to be permanent, and they resisted removal, particularly in those who didn't want to let go. Bellatrix wept and passed out. 

He was left with one person, after he had released the others, and it was his Mudblood. Of course.

"I'm not doing it," she said.

"What do you mean?" Lord Slytherin said.

"I took this Mark as part of my life-debt to you. I am not releasing it. And I am not taking that fucking oath."

"What am I supposed to do? I said I would disband the Death Eaters?"

"You did. I'm a rogue agent," she said. "Perhaps now and again, a name might fall into my ears. You simply telling me a name wouldn't be a violation of your oath." She smiled sweetly.

Lord Slytherin laughed. "Give me your arm. I'll disguise it."

He poured his magic into her arm, and it mingled with hers, turning the skull into a crow, which picked up the serpent in its claws and flew up her arm. "It is under your control now."

"Is it still connected to yours?"

He ran his fingers through her hair. "Always." He shivered as he felt her send the tattoo to her heart, the crow in the center, and the serpent forming an ouroboros around it. 

Lily took her Death Eater mask and transfigured it into the shape of a crow skull instead. "No one will blame you for my actions, my Lord." He had never used a crow as a symbol. If she attacked in this guise, she would be a new threat, not a Death Eater.

"You are definitely my favourite. Are you telling your inamorato?"

She shook her head. "He's safer not knowing. It isn't his skillset."

"Very well. Then I will tell no one either," he said.

She looked into his crimson eyes, and the moment lengthened. She thought of Severus, and she didn't care for him any less, but she ached for the Dark Lord who had released her from her years of imprisonment. She stepped closer, and dropped her mask, and he took her hand and pulled her into his lap, burying his face into her neck.

And then she had a damn bird attacking her.

"Stop it, Helios! Off! Bad phoenix!" Slytherin said, batting at the bird, and it wouldn't leave them alone until they worked together to shove it into its cage.

They fell onto the sofa together laughing. "Stupid bird," Slytherin said. "Who asked its opinion?"

"Was that Albus's phoenix? How did you bind it?"

Slytherin laughed. "It was sort of Abeforth's idea."

* * *

_*flashback*_

 

"The first step in neutralising someone with a phoenix is to kill the phoenix."

That's what Abeforth had said when they were working out their plans for dealing with Albus Dumbledore.

As predicted, half the room exploded in outrage at the very thought. As if a  _bird_ mattered more than  _ending the war._ As if they all didn't eat meat nearly every day of their lives. Okay, most of them didn't eat meat from magical animals, but still.

_It. Was. A. Bird._

Then he said, "Of course it won't  _stay_ dead..."

And then people shut up and started listening to him.

"You'll have a few days after killing the bird before it's regrown into its powers. That's how long you'll have to figure out how to stop it from rescuing Albus. Or if you haven't, then kill it again," Abeforth said. "Keep going until you have, or until Albus takes the oath, or dies in Nurmengard."

 

* * *

 "So what did you do then?" Lily said. "After you killed it, and had a chick on your hands?"

"I _Obliviated_ it. Then I hand fed it until I was its best friend. And then I named it Helios."

"That's a much better name. What kind of narcissist names their pet  _Fawkes_ when they live in  _Scotland?"_

"An oblivious, tactless narcissist with no understanding of muggle history." Slytherin said.

Lily looked up into her Lord's eyes, and that tension was there again, that knowledge that they belonged to one another, no matter what had come before or after. He ran the back of his fingers along her cheek, and rested his forehead against hers. "No. I can't," he said.

"Can't? Because of the bird?" she asked, her voice amused.

"I don't give a damn about the bird. Because of Severus. He's one of mine. I won't betray one of mine," he said. 

She pressed her lips against his, chastely, stood and summoned her mask. "And that's why I love you," she said, as she Disapparated.

* * *

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Abe: Fawkes, Albus?  
> Albus: *beaming* I've always admired Guy Fawkes.  
> Abe: Do you actually know what he did?  
> Albus: Certainly! He invented fireworks! That's why there are fireworks on his birthday, November fifth!  
> Abe: He was a Catholic terrorist who planted gunpowder under the muggle Wizengamot so that he could kill them all, and their king, and put the Catholics in charge again.  
> Albus: Ah yes. Catholic is what the muggles call themselves.  
> Abe: ... No. No it isn't.  
> Albus: I'll remind you that I have a NEWT in Muggle Studies, and you are a dropout, Abe!  
> *later*  
> McGonagall: *gets drunk at the Hogs Head*  
> McGonagall: *swears a lot about how Albus thinks Catholic and Protestant are synonyms for 'muggle'*
> 
> * * *
> 
> Author: Really, Lily? Severus _and_ the Dark Lord?  
> Lily: DON'T JUDGE ME!!!!!


	14. Sequel Alert

A hop, step, and a time skip, and it's time for a Sequel:

#  [Walburga Black, Minister for Magic](https://archiveofourown.org/works/18629914/chapters/44177233)

### Summary:

 

Five years after the war ended with an armistice, life has changed a lot in Wix Britain.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Barty: Wait, I was going to woo Regulus...  
> Author: You're together in the sequel.  
> Barty: You mean it all happened off-screen?  
> Author: Yep! *popping the p*  
> Barty: So how was it? Who made the first move? Does Aries call me Daddy? Does Walburga approve of me?  
> Author: You made the first move, Aries calls you Daddy and Regulus Papa, Walburga grudgingly approves of you because no one is good enough for her precious ickle boys...  
> Barty: Which of us tops?  
> Author: Woah woah woah... that is totally up to the two of you... Leave me out of it! *backs away slowly*

**Author's Note:**

> Also inspired by A Counterfeit of Love by BrilliantLady https://archiveofourown.org/series/592519


End file.
